Food Geek Review:Smashburger

It’s been a while since I’ve done a food review column. Not because I haven’t been eating anything good, I just haven’t been anywhere new or had anything worth writing about. That is, of course until now.

We recently tried one of our newest fast food places, Smashburger, and we liked it so much that we went back a second time in the same week, which never happens with a fast food place for us usually. This may be one of the best fast food burgers I’ve ever had.

The Bacon Triple Double-awesomeness in a bun.

Research from Wikipedia tells me that the restaurant chain was founded 10 years ago in Colorado, and it gets it’s name from the technique of smashing a ball of meat down into a grill to make the patty. They have a good variety of specialty burgers, which can also be made as chicken sandwiches if one wishes, but our personal favorite has to be their Bacon Triple Double.

This burger they have as their daily special at $6.99 for the bacon version, and only $4.99 for without bacon (though why would you not want bacon?) And it is comprised of a perfectly smashed and season beef patty along with two slices of American cheese, plus melted cheddar, lettuce, tomato, onions, pickles, ketchup, and their special Smash sauce all held together by a deliciously buttery egg bun.

This burger is simply amazing. Now I’ve had burgers from Five Guys, Red Robin, and In and Out and this burger, in my opinion, ranks among the best. The cheese is perfectly melty and all the juices of the burger are perfectly sealed in like awesomeness contained in a bun. It’s something you have to try.

And then once you get past the burger, their sides are phenomenal as well. Perfectly portioned and seasoned fries or tater tots that they call Smash Fries (or Tots) which are tossed with Rosemary, Garlic, and Olive Oil. I say perfectly portioned because unlike Five Guys, which is a place I like, but they think it’s cool to just give you an extra pound of french fries, which is way more than anyone could eat, and you know that fries aren’t good the next day, so it’s just wasteful in my opinion. But here, you get just the right amount, and they’re seasoned to perfection so ketchup isn’t necessary.

Also, they have amazing fried pickles. Some of the best I’ve had anywhere, just missing a ranch dipping sauce to go with that to really take that one over the edge for me.

I try to avoid sweets for the most part these days, but if you’re having a sweet tooth craving, they also have Haagen Daz milkshakes if you’re not full after everything else.

I see on their website that Smashburger is available in 36 states and 9 countries, so if you are fortunate enough to have one of these locations in your area, and you haven’t been, I highly suggest that you go check it out.